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  1. Dodge the obstacles and complete the level as quickly as possible. It doesn't get much more classic than that in video game design, but developer PixelNAUTS Games has managed to give that premise a fresh spin with LOST ORBIT: Terminal Velocity. Set in the ominous solitude of space, one man's quest for survival turns into a fast-paced, score-chasing adventure, one where dodging hazards with split-second precision proves intense and engaging. You play as Harrison, an astronaut maintenance worker who becomes stranded in deep space when his ship is damaged. Using only the boosters on his suit, he has to careen past deadly asteroids and space debris to make it back to civilization with the help of an AI drone. The main game gets a little philosophical about the nature of humanity and perseverance (through the eyes of a mechanical drone) while the new content for Terminal Velocity takes a different track and is much more silly and comical. The sci-fi ponderings are a little more interesting while the comical stuff feels better suited to the game's action, but ultimately Terminal Velocity might be at its best when there's no dialogue at all and you're just focused on survival. The bottom line of the gameplay is perfectly simple: dodge whatever obstacles are in your path to reach the end of the level. Naturally Terminal Velocity has a lot more going for it than just that, though. For one thing the controls aren't perfectly precise—by design. You have to be extremely careful about adjusting your position slightly since it is extremely easy to overcorrect and end up hurtling off in the wrong direction. To keep things interesting throughout the adventure, even after you've mastered the controls, Terminal Velocity gives you rank on your performance in each level, based on the time you took, number of deaths, and whether you grabbed all of the collectible Obtainium in the level (more on that later). You have to play pretty perfectly to earn the highest platinum ranking by taking on risks to maintain speed, but it gives players a nice incentive to push their skills. You can finish the game by playing extremely carefully and slowly, but to really master the game you've got to keep your boosters at maximum from start to finish, narrowly dodging hazards left and right. There are also a good number of unique obstacles that keep the gameplay feeling fresh over the short length of the campaign. You're able to pass through small planets that might give you a speed boost or slow you down to adjust your positioning, or you might leap through wormholes to zip around the screen. There's enough variety that the gameplay stays engaging from one level to the next. You're also able to upgrade your abilities with the Obtainium you've collected, which makes for a nice sense of progression while also helping you perfect your skills with helpful bonuses. There aren't many upgrades to unlock and they aren't so varied that they truly change the way you play the game, but there's still something satisfying about continuously upgrading your boosters to breakneck speeds. A few aspects of the game can feel frustrating though. It's particularly hard to see and react to asteroids that come in from the sides of the screen, plus the game uses a wraparound screen (i.e. if you go off the left side of the screen you'll end up on the right side of the screen) which can be extremely disorienting. There is a small indicator of where you'll end up on the other side of the screen but this small flashing light looks so similar to the HUD that it really doesn't stand out well. Thankfully there are frequent checkpoints though so even if you do end up dying a lot in one area you won't lose too much progress. The Terminal Velocity edition of LOST ORBIT also adds entirely new levels in the epilogue which add a real game-changer: a drill that lets you break through asteroids in your path. It significantly alters the way you approach obstacles in the epilogue and serves as a perfect safety net that allows you to correct minor mistakes (though of course the epilogue also throws plenty of obstacles at you that can't be drilled through). The culmination of the epilogue levels is the most unique and at times frustrating level in the game, where you have to clear out all of the asteroids in your path by drilling through them. It's a clever inversion of the main gameplay mechanics though it really highlights how the controls are extremely unforgiving to small mistakes. The game's presentation isn't particularly flashy, but when it comes to speeding past obstacles where even one minor mistake will kill you, all you really need from the game is smooth clarity, which the game manages well. The epilogue adds some cartoonish character portraits to complement the more comical dialogue, but in both cases less probably would have been more. The game also features a pretty solid soundtrack, but there are two caveats here. For one, there aren't enough unique tracks—the songs that are in the game are great, but a little variety would have helped. Secondly, the drone's voice acted dialogue causes the background music to be turned down, which is a shame. The voice work is fine but the music is much more engaging, especially when you're just in the zone with the obstacle-dodging action. LOST ORBIT: Terminal Velocity offers a solid if brief take on the classic "avoid the obstacles" video game structure. Clever hazards, mechanics, and upgrade features help keep the fast-paced action engaging, though the real meat of the game comes from your interest in earning a perfect platinum medal on each level. Time trial fiends will love perfecting their techniques to get through the game's challenges unscathed, but anyone less invested in score-chasing might not gravitate toward Terminal Velocity. Rating: 7 out of 10 Asteroids Review code provided by publisher LOST ORBIT: Terminal Velocity is now available on the Switch eShop for $9.99.
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